This I Promise You
by CatStar
Summary: My first ever romance fic. This is a TK/Kari/Daisuke love triangle. Who will win Hikari's heart? Please r/r!
1. Obsessing

A/N: I do not own Digimon blah blah blah, u get the idea! :) Kari, Daisuke, and TK are 13 in this fic, so that makes Joe 17, Izzy, Mimi, and Miyako 14, Iori 11, and the rest 16. I dunno if the others are gonna be featured a lot in this fic though....Well, enjoy!  
****************************************  
  
"Daisuke?"  
  
"Yes, Hikari?"  
  
"You just walked me to my front door five minutes ago....Now you're on the  
phone with me now....How did you get to your apartment so quickly?"  
  
"I like hearing your voice, Kari....You have a beautiful voice...Did you know  
that?"  
  
Hikari sighed, in case a scream got out, which is what she really wanted to do.   
She had just came home from a day at school, also known as a day where Daisuke  
Motomiya follows her around like a little love slave. She has tried to make it clear that  
she only liked him as a friend, but Daisuke never seems to listen.  
  
"Um...you know, Hikari..." Daisuke said shyly. "The school dance is coming up  
next week and-"  
  
"What is it, Tai??" Hikari yelled in panic as Taichi walked in the door, trying to  
avoid what Daisuke was going to say. Obviously, it was to ask her to the dance.  
Taichi gave her a blank look. "Huh?"  
  
"Did you want something, Tai? Maybe the phone??" Hikari gave him a pleading  
look at the phone, which was in one hand. In the other, she had a pen, and found a note pad. On the pad, she wrote down, 'Tai, it's Daisuke! Say that you need to use the phone, NOW!'  
  
"Oh! Uh, yeah, Kari," Taichi stammered. "Um, could I use the phone? I need to  
call Sora about something!" he said in an unnecessary loud voice.  
  
"Daisuke, I gotta go," Kari said quickly into the phone. "Bye!"  
  
"Bye, Kari," he replied, a little dissapointed.  
  
Hikari hung up the phone and did the scream she has been wanting to do all day  
ever since that morning, when she found a giant stuffed teddy bear in her locker that was  
from Daisuke.  
  
Tai walked into the kitchen and took an apple from the bowl on the table. "So,  
Motomiya has been giving you a hard day again, huh?" He bit into it.  
  
Kari sighed and went into the kitchen, sitting down in the chair, with her school  
bag hanging on the back. She took out the big stuffed teddy bear and put it on the table,  
but putting her head down as well. "What does this tell you?" she groaned as a response.  
  
"Here, have an apple," Tai said and tossed one to her. She looked up just in time  
to see it coming toward her, and caught it with both hands. But then she put her head  
down on the table again, in annoyance.  
  
Tai chuckled. "You'd think he might as well get himself surgically attached to you  
and get it over with," he said as he took another bite at the apple.  
  
Kari looked up in horror. "Don't even say that around him! It might give him  
ideas!" She flung the apple jokily at him, but Tai caught it with ease.  
  
"Oh, don't worry about it," Tai replied. "He is a nice kid."  
  
"He is," Kari agreed. "He's smart, sweet, not even that bad looking. But-" Kari  
suddenly stopped, as she saw something blinking in her open backpack. She picked up the  
device, and saw that it was a walkie talkie. In white out on the side, was 'D. Motomiya'.  
  
She rolled her eyes and switched it off. She stood up from the chair and waved the  
device in the air. "But _this _is a little insane!" she exclaimed as she finished her sentence.   
"What are you laughing at???" She demanded as she saw that her brother was practically  
choking with laughter on his apple.  
  
Suddenly, the doorbell rang.  
  
"I'll get it," Kari said, as she playfully socked Tai in the head, only to make him  
laugh even more.  
  
"Who is it?" she called out to the front door.  
  
"It's TK!" a familar boy's voice replied cheerfully.  
  
Kari opened the door and smiled at her best friend. "Hey Takeru! Come on in!"  
She held the door open for him.  
  
_Man, she's beautiful...._Takeru thought as he laid eyes on her. Ever since the  
Digiworld, he has always had a crush on her. He never said anything about it though,  
because he didn't want to ruin the great friendship they had. Besides, he knew that  
Daisuke had a major crush on her, and didn't want to hurt his feelings by asking her out.  
  
"I just wanted to make sure you're okay," Takeru said as he sat down on the  
couch next to her. "Since Dais has been....well, a little crazy around you. Did you get the  
rose in your locker from him?"  
  
"He left me a rose too?" Kari asked, astonished, as she threw her hands up in the  
air. "Last time I checked, he gave me a teddy bear." She pointed toward the bear in the  
kitchen where it sat. "And he left a little listening device in my back pack..." She held up  
the walkie talkie as evidence.  
  
Takeru laughed.   
  
Hikari even mangaed a little smile as she put it down on the coffee table. "All the  
things he's doing is sweet, but listening in on me and following my every move is a little  
unnecessary."  
  
"Bet'cha he's even gonna ask you to the dance next week, Hikari," Tai added as  
he sat down on the chair, facing the couch where the two of them sat.  
  
"You're right," Kari replied a little glum. "He was gonna ask me to dance while I  
was on the phone with him, but you came in just in time and I got off."  
  
"Why don't you just give him a chance, Kari?" Takeru said suddenly._ Where did  
that come from??_ he thought. "I mean, Daisuke may act a little wacky around you, but if  
you gave him a chance, maybe he'll act like a normal human being. _What am I saying?? I  
like Hikari too! Why am I doing this??...Coz I know she'll never go for me that's why....  
_  
Hikari gave him a skeptical look. "Maybe....But I don't really think he's my type at  
all...."  
  
"I'd say give him a chance," spoke up Taichi. "He does have good taste in idols  
and sports...."  
  
"I think that's coz _you're_ his idol and he likes _soccer _which is_ you're_ favorite  
sport," Kari laughed.  
  
Tai grinned and said, "Well, I better get my homework done. I have soccer  
practice tonight. Cya guys later. Bye TK!"  
  
"Bye Tai," the both chorused.  
  
When he was finally out of the room. Takeru turn to Hikari and said, "Well, um, I  
better be going too...."  
  
"Oh, okay." Kari got up and walked him to the door. She couldn't help but feeling  
a little upset that he was leaving. "Bye, TK!" she said as she held the door open for him.  
"Talk to ya later, Kari," he said, and smiled at her.  
  
_He is really cute..._Kari thought as she gazed into his sparkling blue eyes. _Why  
haven't I noticed it before?  
_  
As Takeru was leaving the Yagami's apartment, he heard a little shuffle behind  
him. He quickly turned around, but saw nothing. It was a little weird, but he just  
shrugged it off, and walked toward his own apartment. Little did he know, Daisuke  
Motomiya was the one that was watching Kari's apartment like a hawk. He narrowed his  
eyes as he watched TK walk away.  
  
_He better not have asked Hikari to the dance..._Daisuke thought angrily. _She's  
mine!_  
  
***********  
  
::sigh:: Well, that's Part 1. It sucks in my POV, I dont even know what's gonna happen next! Actually, I DO have an idea, but...I'm sorta stuck. I'll be back with the next part ASAP!  



	2. Daisuke and Hikari's POVs

Well, here's the second part! ^.^ I DO admit that I made Daisuke a little obsessive in this, but I dunno if he's really like this in 02....He prolly is, who knows? Okay, on with the fic!  
  
***********  
  
Instead of going back to his apartment and sulk about Takeru being number one  
with Hikari, Daisuke decided to sulk while taking a walk instead. He stepped out into the  
streets of Odaiba, letting the fresh air clear his mind.  
  
_I don't get it...._Daisuke thought sadly, as he walked toward the park. _ I always  
show my affection for her in public, and show how much I love her, but she doesn't even  
notice me. What am I doing wrong? I'm doing all this stuff for her, and all she does is  
pay more attention to-  
_  
"Takeru Takaishi," he spat out, angrily. He kicked a stone in anguish. It went  
inside a trash can. "Big basketball star," he muttered. "Half the female population at  
school would die to date him. The little bastard...Why can't he pick one of them and leave  
my Hikari alone? I think she's starting to like me...." He patted a walkie talkie in his  
pocket, which was the receiver for the one in the Yagami's apartment. "I mean, she _did_  
say I was sweet and cute....I wish I could've heard more. The other one was stuck inside her backpack..... I know it was wrong to sort of spy on her....But didn't I hear somewhere that love makes people do crazy things?"  
  
He kept on walking quietly around the block, not wanting to go to the park  
anymore. He tried to think of a way to get Takeru away from Hikari, but all he could  
think about is Hikari, herself.  
  
_She's so beautiful and smart and kind_, he thought dreamily. _And she's so  
compassionate too...The Digimental and Crest of Light was perfect for her...She's like,  
the ideal princess. No wonder Takaishi seems like he's interested in her. What's there  
not to be interested?  
_  
Suddenly, the sound of thunder came out from the sky. Daisuke was such in a  
dream-like state, he barely noticed the dark gray clouds that hid the bright, golden,  
afternoon sun. The clouds suddenly opened, and rain fell out of them, like Niagara Falls.  
  
"I better get home," he murmured to himself, "before I look like a drowned rat."  
  
He started to walk away, until he saw a flash of pink and white. It was Hikari!   
His heart started beating double-time. Her light brown hair was soaked as she ran as fast  
as she could from the rain. She just looked more beautiful in his eyes.  
  
_She probably wanted to take a walk too, _he thought as he followed her. Th_at's  
cool- it's like our minds are linked!  
_  
"Hik-!" he started to call out as she was going to cross the street. But then his  
eyes widened as a big truck started zooming toward her, at what it looked like 60mph!  
"HIKARI!!!!!" he screamed as he leaped toward her.  
  
He heard her scream in panic as the truck kept on racing towards the 13-year-old  
girl.......  
  
****************  
  
Hikari sighed as Takeru left the apartment, thinking of what a good friend he was.   
_I don't know what I'd do without him. He's protected me so much....like that time in the  
Digiworld when Piedmon almost captured us. He said he's protect me, no matter what.   
He's so sweet...not to mention a total hottie...  
_  
Then, she did a double take._ Why am I thinking about TK like this? I don't..._like  
_like him, do I? No, of course not...Although if he did ask me out, I wouldn't mind...I'd  
say yes....  
_  
_Augh! This is so confusing! TK's, my best friend, damnit! And besides, like, all  
the girls at school are practically in love with him...He has a lot to choose from. No way  
he could choose me over the cheerleader type at his basketball games....Although he  
could like me....  
_  
Hikari had just about enough had it with all this confusion. She decided she  
needed some air. "Tai!" she called out. "I'm going for a walk, okay?"  
  
"Okay! But don't go to far!" he replied from his bedroom.  
  
"Where do you think I would walk to, Hong Kong?" Kari said under her breath,  
her hand on the doorknob.  
  
"I heard that," Taichi said with false sternness to his voice. But he couldn't help  
but smile.  
  
Kari smiled back, and she was still smiling as she left her apartment. _I'm so lucky  
to have a brother like Tai_, she thought to herself, as she walked into the street. _Now,  
what should I do about TK? Maybe he doesn't_ like_ like me, because he said to give Dais  
a chance....Or maybe he only said that because Daisuke to Takeru to say that....  
_  
She walked past a sporting goods store, and right out in the display window were  
basketball supplies, like basketball nets and basketballs. _Okay...the difference between  
Daisuke and Takeru....Well, there isn't really a lot of differences...Only that Daisuke has  
a bigger temper and on the soccer team, while Takeru doesn't really have a temper at all,  
and is on the basketball team. Daisuke is really sweet, it's just that he doesn't have to  
impress me so much....The more he impresses me, the more annoying he is....Like that  
time when he tried to digivolve Buimon into an angel Digimon stronger than  
Angemon..._Kari laughed out loud at that memory.  
  
Hikari kept on walking the streets of Odaiba, thinking really hard about Takeru  
and Daisuke. She didn't even notice the droplets of rain sprinkling down on her hair. She  
looked up at the sky. "Oh, it's raining," she said, turning up the palm of her hand to the  
rain. "I better get home."  
  
She started walking to the direction of her apartment. _ But who do I choose?_ she  
asked herself desperately. _ Maybe I should give Daisuke a chance. Maybe I'll start to like  
him. But then again I like....well, starting to like...TK, but he hasn't really shown interest  
in me like Dais has....Kari started walking across a street. Or maybe I should forget  
about both of them and find someone else-  
_  
"HIKARI!!!!!" someone screamed  
  
"Daisuke?" She looked up, but then saw something really gigantic out of the  
corner of her eye. A truck that seemed like the size of China in her point of view was  
racing towards her, big bright lights shining in her face. She screamed, and stood frozen  
to the ground....She couldn't move...She closed her eyes and screamed some  
more....There was no choice but to let the truck hit her.....  
  
*********************  
  
Oooh...Cliffhanger! ::dances around:: I love these...don't you? ^.^ I'll be up with the next part soon, don't worry! Unless....you don't really want the next part....I could just stop the fic right there...hehehe ^.^


	3. A Hero

"HIKARI, NOO!" Daisuke screamed as he leaped toward her frozen body. Her reflexes jerked as he pushed her out of the way, but only knocking her to the ground. He put his arms around her, not wanting to let go, and forced her on her feet as they ran to the other side of the street.  
  
It was only about four feet away where they were standing, but Hikari tripped on a  
rock on the ground and fell flat on her face, with the truck about two feet away!  
  
"Hikari!" Daisuke screamed as he helped her up. He had no time to lose. Holding  
her as tightly as he could, he jumped over to the other side. They both rolled together  
towards the closed door of an abandoned store.  
  
The monster truck drove by without even noticing them.  
  
Hikari started crying, shocked. The tears of her eyes were mixed in with the rapid  
raindrops pouring down on them. _ I can't believe it..._she thought, her head spinning. _My  
whole life flashed before me...If it weren't for...Daisuke...._She wiped her tears with her  
hands and glanced at him. He was still holding onto her, gasping for breath as he looked beyond where the truck headed toward.  
  
"Thanks, Daisuke..." Hikari said, and gulped. "You...you saved my life..."  
  
He looked down at her with serious eyes. Kari could really feel the love coming  
out of them. "I would give anything- even my life- for you, Kari....You know that. That  
driver should pay to what he almost did to you...Son of a bitch..." he said angrily. Tears started welling up in his eyes. "I care about you more than anything in the world...."  
  
_Has he always looked at me like that?_ Kari wondered, as they sat there together in  
the pouring rain. _Why haven't I noticed it? No guy has ever looked at me like  
that...Ever.  
_  
"Oh, you're hurt!" Kari exclaimed as she saw blood trickling down his arm.  
  
He looked at it. "Oh, yeah. I probably hit it on the damn rock when I fell..." His  
eyes lowered. "I should've just let the truck hit me....I'll only die happy if I know you're  
living a happy life, Hikari..."  
  
Hikari felt the tears well up in her eyes again. Their eyes met for a second, but  
they quickly looked away and blushed. "Here," she said, taking out a handkerchief from  
her pocket. She tied it gently around the wound, as she tried to avoid Daisuke's gaze.  
  
"Thanks..." he said softly.  
  
"No, I should be thanking you," she replied as he helped her up from the ground.   
They looked into each others eyes. All Hikari could think of was the rain....bright  
lights...the truck coming at her, straight at her body....then the push over...  
  
_My life almost ended..._Kari realized.  
  
"My life almost ended," she said, repeating her thought. She was suddenly  
shaking. "Oh Daisuke!!" She flung her arms around her and cried into his chest.  
  
"It's okay Kari, it's okay," he kept on whispering to her. He almost wanted to  
jump up for joy that she was actually paying attention to him. But not now. How could  
he be so selfish, thinking about his own feelings when Hikari almost ended up dead?  
  
"I'm so scared now!" she cried, looking up at him. "What if it happens again?   
What if I don't survive next time?"  
  
"I'll protect you," he promised softly. "I won't let anything happen to you, I  
promise."  
  
_Those words seem familiar..._Hikari thought dizzily as she looked into his eyes. _I  
wonder why they do...  
_  
Daisuke took his hand and tilted her chin up, tracing her jaw line with his finger. It  
seemed like eternity when he finally leaned down and kissed her softly on the lips. And  
Hikari kissed him back.  
  
The kiss finally ended and all they could do was look at each other. Hikari felt a  
blush ride up her neck. _Maybe I made a decision after all....  
_  
Hand in hand, they walked silently back to their apartments. Daisuke insisted on  
walking her to her door. When they got there, he turned and faced her, blushing.   
  
"Um, Kari? Will you....go to the dance with me next week?" he asked, looking  
into her beautiful auburn eyes.  
  
She smiled. "Of course I will."  
  
"And maybe a movie the next night?"  
  
"Sure!"  
  
Daisuke was on a roll, and was about to ask her to the movies tomorrow night.   
No, save it, he thought to himself. _ Do go too fast. Just see how the dance goes good first. I know it will._ He smiled to himself.  
  
"Well, goodnight," he said, wrapping his arms around her waist.  
  
"Goodnight, Dais," she whispered as they kissed once more.  
  
As they broke apart, she said, "You can keep the handkerchief."  
  
"I'll treasure it," he replied.  
  
Hikari walked in her apartment, dreamily. She didn't even notice her frowning  
parents waiting on their couch, and a very concerned looking Taichi, who was home  
because his soccer practice was canceled due to rain.  
  
"Where have you been?! Look at you! You're soaking wet!!" her father nearly  
yelled, snapping Hikari out of her trance.  
  
"P- Papa," she stammered. "I'm sorry. I needed to go out for a walk. T-to clear  
my head. And it started raining. Tai let me out."  
  
"Yeah, but that was like, an hour ago!" he said, crossing his arms.  
  
"Here, Hikari, let me get you a towel," her mother said, a little more gently as she  
went into the linen closet. But her eyes were blazing.  
  
"I-I..." Hikari stammered as she saw everyone glaring at her. "Um..." She let out a  
little cough, and that was all she needed to start crying again.  
  
Her family dropped their fiery glares and were covered with worry. Her mother  
rushed in at the sound of her crying and draped the towel over her shoulders and hugged  
her tightly.  
  
"Hikari, what's wrong?" she asked, concerned.  
  
"My-my life," she sniffled.  
  
Tai blinked. "You mean you're crying because you think you're life stinks?"  
  
"No! I'm crying because," Sniff, "My life," Choke, "Almost ended! If it weren't  
for Daisuke..."  
  
She went into the story on how she was going to take a walk to clear her mind  
about some things. It started raining, so she decided it'd be best if she went home. But she was careless, and crossed the road without even looking for incoming cars. The truck came toward her, and Daisuke pushed her out of the way, shielding her the whole time.  
  
She was still crying when she finished the story. Now everyone was hugging her  
and fussing over her.  
  
"I'm so glad you're all right," her father said. "But don't EVER do that again."  
  
"Yes, Papa," she said. "I won't be careless again, ever."  
  
"Yeah, we wouldn't wanna lose you," added Taichi, but his eyes were sorrowful.   
_I wouldn't know what I'd do if I lost my little sister...  
_  
"We should thank Daisuke tomorrow," their mother said, standing up. "Not right  
now. He's probably having a talk with his family too. You better get changed and start  
on your homework." Their mom and dad went into the kitchen, starting on dinner.  
  
Hikari changed. She did her homework. She went through dinner. She went to  
bed. But all she had was Daisuke on her mind as she did all of those things. _Now I won't have to worry about Takeru anymore, _she thought happily in bed. _He was right. I did give Daisuke a chance, and he turned out to be perfect. I have to thank him tomorrow.   
_  
She closed her eyes, and let the little crush she had on Takeru evaporate. It went  
completely away overnight.  
  
Or did it?  
  
***************************  
  
::ducks tomatoes as Takari fans throw them angrily at her:: Okay! Okay, dont panic! ::hides behind MetalGarurumon becoz someone runs up to her, wanting to strangle her:: I am totally a Takari fan, but remember this is a LOVE TRIANGLE. I am not a Daikari fan at all. I promise, there is gonna be Takari at the end. So PLEASE be patient, and dont hate me, coz I hate it when people hate me...o.o;;;


	4. Takeru's Worries

Okay, I'm posting 3 parts today, coz I dont want you guys to hate me about Part 3. You'll catch a little...._hint_.....about what's gonna happen at the end in these chapters.  
  
************************  
  
_That same day....._  
  
Instead of going to his own apartment after he left the Yagami's, Takeru decided  
to pay his big brother, Yamato, a visit. He walked cautiously up to his apartment and  
knocked on the door.  
  
_Come on Matt, be home. I need some brotherly advice here,_ he thought, Hikari's  
smiling face in his head.  
  
The door opened up and an older version of Takeru appeared. "Hey TK!" Yamato  
said, grinning at him, his azure eyes shining. "What brings you here?"  
  
"A confusing life," he replied, looking at the ground.  
  
Yamato looked at him carefully. "Something's bothering you, isn't it?" He waved  
his hand over his eyes, which weren't exactly focused on his older brother. "You're doing that staring thing you do when you're upset," he observed. "Come on in." He held the door open for Takeru, and they both sat down on the couch in the living room.  
  
"So, TK, what's wrong?" Yamato said.  
  
"Um...." Takeru bit his lip, nervously. "Matt, when did you start  
having....ummm....strong feelings about....a girl? Like, you know, strong feelings like  
you'd want the girl to be...um...to be-uh- to go out with you?" he managed to sputter out.  
  
Yamato raised his eyebrow in surprise. He shrugged. "When I was around eleven, maybe twelve....Around your age I guess," he replied, looking at his younger brother curiously. "Why?"  
  
Takeru nervously licked his lips. "I-uh...I sorta like someone, I guess," he  
muttered.  
  
"Who?" Yamato asked, interested.   
  
Takeru mumbled something that couldn't be heard even if Yamato's ear was right  
by his mouth.  
  
"Come on, tell me," Yamato said, frowning. "You need advice, don't you?"  
  
"Okay, it's Hikari!" It just shot out from his mouth, and he immediately blushed.  
  
"Well, I think I _like_ like her, ya know? And I wanna ask her to the big dance next Friday, but the thing is, Dais likes her obviously, and I don't wanna hurt his feelings, but I really do like Hikari, you know,_ like_ like her in that way, but sometimes I think that she doesn't like me, coz I'm not exactly paying attention to her like Dais does, but that thing is really annoying to her, so maybe she does like me since we've been friends for so long what do you think, Yamato?????" he asked pleadingly. After all that blabbering, he didn't notice that he was actually on the floor by Yamato's feet, looking like he was really begging for advice.  
  
Takeru cautiously got up from the floor and placed himself in his spot on the  
couch again. Yamato looked at him and blinked, not saying anything. He smoothed his hair back with his hand before saying, "Call her up and ask her to the dance. She _is _your 'friend'", he did little quotes with his fingers, "after all. I wouldn't see why it would be wrong going to a dance with a 'friend'."  
  
"All I gotta do is ask her before Daisuke does...." Takeru realized. "Matt, can I use  
your phone?"   
  
"Sure, go ahead," he replied.  
  
Takeru got up, and dialed up the Yagami's number. He was surprised that his  
hand was shaking. _No need to worry,_ he thought as he waited for someone to pick up.   
_We'd just be going as friends....right?   
_  
"Hello, Yagami residence," Tai's voice rang out.  
  
"Um, hi, Taichi. This is Takeru," he said. His hand that was on the phone was  
still shaking. "Is...is Hikari there?"  
  
"Nope, sorry," Tai replied. "She went out for a walk somewhere. Do you want  
her to call you back?"  
  
"Um, no, that's okay. I'll just see her at school tomorrow." Takeru was a little  
disappointed and relieved at the same time. "Bye, Taichi."  
  
"Bye TK. Cya later."  
  
_Click.  
_  
"Well?" Yamato asked, his face questioning.  
  
"She wasn't there," TK said. He couldn't help feeling a little glum.  
  
"Hey, that's okay." Yamato patted him on the shoulder. "Just ask her tomorrow."  
  
"Right," Takeru said, trying to brighten up. "I guess I better go home now.   
Mom's probably worried about me."  
  
They both walked to the front door. "Just call me whenever you need me,"  
  
Yamato said. "I'm much closer to you now that you moved to Odaiba. You can talk to  
me about anything, remember that."  
  
Takeru smiled. "Okay, thanks, Matt."  
  
He left and walked to his apartment. He couldn't help but feel a little chill,  
thinking about the next day. That maybe nothing will go as he planned.....  
  
********************  
o.o What are u doin still reading this for?? Quick, go to the next part! ^.^


	5. Surprises for Takeru and Daisuke

The next morning, Takeru knocked on the Yagami's front door, so that he and Hikari  
could walk to school together, like they always did. Occasionally, they'd pick up Iori and Miyako along the way, and Daisuke would be there, trying to get Hikari's attention. But this time, Takeru wanted to be along with her, so that he could pop the question.  
  
Hikari answered the door. As soon as she saw him, her face lit up into a big smile.   
His heart started beating double time. She looked back over her shoulder. "Mama, I'm  
going to school now! Takeru's here."  
  
"Okay, sweetie!" she replied. "Bye!"  
  
"Bye, Mama!" She picked up her pink school bag that was by her feet and slung it  
around her shoulders, and onto her back.  
  
She turned to Takeru. "Before we go, TK, I wanna thank you."  
  
He was confused. "For what?"  
  
"For-"  
  
"Hikari!" Daisuke's voice called out.  
  
_Uh oh_, thought Takeru. _ I wanted to be alone with Kari..._ He took a peek at the  
girl beside him, expecting the totally annoyed look she always gets whenever Daisuke  
came running up to her like that. But to his total shock, she was actually _smiling. _  
  
"Hey Daisuke!" she greeted as he stopped in front of them. More to Takeru's  
total shock, Daisuke gave her a big hug...and they actually _kissed. _  
  
_Am I seeing things??? _ he wondered, looking at his two classmates make-out right  
in front of him. _Have I landed into some alternate universe while I was asleep?  
_  
Their kissed ended, and they both turned to Takeru, who was still looking at them  
with a blank face. He was speechless.  
  
"I want to thank you for telling me to give Dais a chance," Hikari said, taking  
Daisuke's hand. "He totally saved my life yesterday from a big truck, while I was going  
for a walk."  
  
Daisuke was surprised. "I didn't know you told her that, Takeru. Thanks, man, I  
own you. You sort of brought us together, besides the driver of the truck." He smiled at  
Hikari, who smiled back.  
  
Takeru wanted to kick himself. _Stupid! Stupid, stupid, stupid! _ he chided himself,  
as the three of them walked to school. _ I should've never said those things to Hikari! I  
should've stayed at her apartment for a couple more minutes yesterday, so maybe she  
wouldn't have gotten out, and this would've never happened._ He shook his head.   
_They're probably going to the dance together now, I know it._ He sighed.  
  
"What's wrong, TK?" asked Hikari.  
  
"What? Oh, nothing," he said. "I....I just remembered we had a math test today."  
  
"Don't worry," assured Daisuke. "I looked over the material last night. It's pretty  
easy. If you look over the book really quick before you have the test, you'll be fine."  
  
"Thanks," muttered Takeru. _Yeah, thanks for taking Hikari away from me! _  
They got to school, and everything seemed to just slide by Takeru. Daisuke and  
Hikari told Miyako and Iori how they "got together". By third period, it seemed as if  
everyone knew they were together. Takeru got sick and tired of how "Daisuke saved  
Hikari" and that "Kari and Dais are SUCH a cute couple".  
  
But Daisuke seemed to be in heaven by last period, Chemistry. Unfortunately,  
none of his fellow Digidestined were in his class, not even Kari. He already missed her,  
even though he just talked to her about ten minutes ago. He didn't have a chemistry  
partner, like everyone else did. Maybe he could find some way to switch Hikari's classes, so that she could be in that class....  
  
Suddenly, the door opened up. A young girl walked shyly into the room, holding a  
note for the teacher. Daisuke seemed to forget all about Hikari and stare at the new girl. She had blonde hair that hung loosely to the middle of her back, in thick waves, and had bright green emerald eyes. She was dressed in dark blue stretch shorts and a baby blue and white striped tank top. She wore black and white Nike's.  
  
The teacher looked at the note she was carrying. Daisuke was trying his best not  
to drool.  
  
"Class," he said, looking up. "This is a new student, Tamashi Kihaku." He turned  
around and wrote her name on the board. "She just moved here from Kawada, so make  
her feel welcome. Tamashi," he looked at her, "you'll have a lab partner while you're in  
my class. The only one who doesn't have one at the moment is Daisuke Motomiya. You can go have a seat know, and welcome to Odaiba." He gestured to the empty seat next to Daisuke. He gulped as Tamashi slid in next to him.  
  
"Now, everyone take out your textbooks-" the teacher started, as he gave  
instructions.   
  
Daisuke looked at Tamashi, admiring her hair's golden glare. She caught his look,  
and smiled. He smiled back and blushed. _ I wonder how I'll get through this class with  
her sitting next to me,_ he thought._ I can barely even breathe at the moment...  
_  
Forty minutes later, the school bell rang, dismissing the class. Daisuke gathered up his books and started out the door, but he felt a tap at his shoulder.  
  
"Um...Daisuke, is it?"  
  
He turned around and saw two gorgeous pair of green eyes staring up at him.  
  
"Yes?" he said, as he tried not to faint.  
  
She smiled. "You're on Odaiba's soccer team aren't you?"  
  
He managed a little nod.  
  
"I knew I recognized you! I was on Kawada's soccer team. We played against  
each other a couple months ago. Remember, you had the ball, and I sneaked up behind you, side kicked the ball so that I got it, and you tripped?"  
  
Daisuke slapped himself inwardly for tripping in front of such a beautiful girl. Of  
course he remembered it! It was so embarrassing back then, and his teammates never let him hear the end of it. "Oh yeah," he said, grinning. "But then later, you were about to kick the ball into the goal. But as it was up in midair, I jumped up and kicked it out of the way. We won that game."  
  
"If our team didn't switch goalies at the last half, we would've won..." Tamashi  
countered, but she was still grinning at him.  
  
"Hey, I'll walk you to your locker, if you want, Tamashi" Daisuke said, suddenly  
shy.  
"That'd be great! Oh, and my friends call me 'Tammy'," she corrected.   
  
They walked in silence to her locker. Daisuke was feeling awkward. "So,  
Tammy, do you think you're going to the dance next week? It'll give you a great  
opportunity to meet people."  
  
"I'd love to....But only if you hang out with me for a little bit. You're the first  
person I met here," she said, as she turned the combination on her locker.  
  
_I'll hang out with you all night, _Daisuke thought, dreamily. Until...  
  
"Hey, Daisuke!"  
  
He whirled around, and saw Hikari walking in his direction. Her eyes flickered in  
confusion as she saw Tamashi beside him, but shrugged it off. She kissed him.  
  
"You ready to go, Dais?" she asked. "We're not waiting for TK. He has  
basketball practice right after school."  
  
Tamashi was done at her locker and looked up to see who was talking. "Oh,  
hello," she said brushing her blonde hair out of her eyes.   
  
"Hikari, this is Tamashi Kihaku," Daisuke said a little nervously. "Tamashi, this is  
Hikari Yagami."  
  
"You can call me 'Tammy'," she said to Hikari. "I just moved here from Kawada.   
Daisuke is my lab partner in Chemistry."  
  
Hikari smiled. "Oh really? Well, welcome to Odaiba. You can call me 'Kari', by  
the way. Do you know Takeru Takaishi? He used to go to Kawada too."  
  
Tamashi's brow furrowed. "No, the name doesn't sound familiar." He looked at  
Daisuke and Hikari, who were holding hands. Daisuke saw this look and sweat-dropped.  
  
"Are you two close friends?" she asked politely.  
  
"Um..." muttered Daisuke.  
  
"We just started going out, actually," replied Hikari with a smile. "Why don't you  
walk home with us?"  
  
Daisuke double sweat-dropped.  
  
Tamashi agreed. They started walking, until they saw Miyako and Iori. Hikari  
introduced everyone, and they all walked home together. As Daisuke expected, Hikari  
started talking away on how they got together. Miyako and Iori tried not to roll their  
eyes. They've heard this story about a million times, and were going to get sick if they  
heard it again.  
  
_It's a sweet story, but this is obsessing it a little...._thought Miyako as she listened  
to Hikari's story.  
  
_I think I'm gonna be sick...._thought Iori. _I don't wanna listen to this story all over  
again.  
_  
_Ha, ha, _laughed Miyako inwardly. _Look at Daisuke's face. He's probably sick of  
the story too! _Then she saw that he was staring at Tamashi. _Wait....could he like  
Tammy? It's possible...but...he was so crazy over Hikari....His face tells me everything, though...  
_  
Miyako and Iori looked at each other and nodded.  
  
_Miyako noticed it too,_ thought Iori.  
  
Daisuke saw his two friends nod at each other, and felt sick. Then his eyes fell  
toward Tamashi's beautiful face as she was laughing at something Hikari said about  
school. Iori and Miyako were laughing too. Daisuke tried to crack a smile, but all he was staring at is how Tamashi's face is like an angel's-  
  
"Right, Daisuke?" asked Hikari.  
  
"Uh- what?" He snapped out of his trance.  
  
"We'll all show Tamashi around the school." She turned to her. "You'll like it  
here, I promise. And you're coming to the dance to meet new people whether you like it  
or not," she added.  
  
Tamashi laughed. Daisuke was hypnotized by her beauty. _I wonder if she'll dance  
with me at the dance...._he wondered. Something inside him snapped. _Oh, man, Hikari! _  
He wanted to slap himself. _ No, I like Hikari, not Tamashi...._But he couldn't help but look at her graceful beauty all the way home.  
  
****************************  
  
Whew! Finishing 3 chapters in one day is NOT normal for me, but I didn't wanna upset you Takari fans. ::grins:: I think you prolly know what happens at the end now....But I'll finish the fic anyway. Please R/R!


	6. Another Visit to Yamato

Gomen ne, minna! I know that you've been waiting for this part for a while....I was a little stuck....Well, here it is! Hmm....I gotta make these chapters more longer....Oh, did I mention that Taichi and Sora are together in this fic? ^.^;  
**************************************  
  
"Takeru watch out!" one of his teammates called out.  
  
_Thunk.  
_  
"Oww..." Takeru flinched as the basketball was hurled toward him, and knocked  
him on the head. He was so busy thinking of Hikari and Daisuke...That they were actually together. He hasn't been paying attention that much in classes, and got in trouble for that most of the day. Now, in basketball practice, it was the third time he spaced out and got knocked by the ball.  
  
His coach seemed to notice it, and he didn't like the way he star player was losing  
distraction. He looked at the clock, seeing that practice was over, and blew his whistle.   
"Okay, good practice everyone! Now, go home and rest, I don't want to see anything  
but effort from you guys. We have a big game next Saturday! Takeru," he said, looking  
at him. "I can count on my star player, right?"  
  
"Oh, sure coach!" he said, with forced enthusiasm. "Don't worry about me, I'll be  
fine." He turned and walked away before the coach could say anything else. _ I shouldn't  
let this thing with Hikari get to me...._he thought. _ She likes Daisuke now, so I can't  
exactly do anything about it. Just go on with my life. _He sighed as he walked home, not bothering to take a shower. He needed to talk to Yamato.  
  
As soon as he knocked on the door to Yamato's apartment, he opened the door.   
Yamato took one look at his little brother's crestfallen face and said, "I'm so sorry  
TK....Tai told me all about it...."  
  
Takeru only groaned as a response as Yamato held the door open for him. "Dad's  
at work and won't be home until later, so we'll have plenty of time to talk," he said, as he watched Takeru plop himself down on the couch in self pity.  
  
"Matt, what should I do??" Takeru looked at him pleadingly. "I really do like  
Hikari. Probably more than Daisuke. She's too good for him; he doesn't deserve her."  
  
"It's not easy being rejected, TK," Yamato said, sitting down next to him.  
  
"Tell me about it..." he muttered.  
  
"But you do realize, there's nothing you can really do about it. You can't make  
her like you, if she likes someone else. Love doesn't work that way. It's not magic."  
Yamato paused before starting up again. "Sort of like Taichi. I mean, he didn't think  
Sora liked him like he liked her. He kept on asking me, 'How do I get Sora to like me?'.   
It sort of drove me nuts, because you can't reverse someone's heart. I told him that, too."  
  
"Yeah, I know..." Takeru muttered. "But Taichi actually _ended up _with Sora. She  
didn't go for some other guy in the process."  
  
Yamato frowned. "Now what's up with that attitude? You have the Crest and  
Digimental of Hope, remember? If you were back in the Digiworld with that attitude,  
Patamon might digivolve into something corrupted like SkullAngemon or something."  
  
Takeru managed a little smile.  
  
"All you gotta do is go on and live your life, Takeru," his brother said. "That's all  
I gotta say. You also have a really long life to live; you're only 13. You'll probably find  
someone else as good as Hikari. Or maybe later on, you _will_ get Hikari somehow."  
  
_Yes, but I want Hikari right now! _Takeru wanted to say. _And I don't want anyone  
else. _ Instead, he looked at Yamato and said, "You're right. I guess I'll just see how my  
life goes....But it won't be easy. I really, really like Hikari, Matt." He looked down at the  
floor.  
  
They didn't say anything for a couple of minutes. Then, Takeru stood up. "I  
better be going now. I would be at Hikari's right now, but I think I'm going to go home....Besides, Daisuke's probably there, making out with her....Wouldn't wanna bother them...." he muttered.  
  
"You also need a shower," Yamato joked, breaking the tension.  
  
Takeru laughed. "I know. Did you know that I was so caught up in Hikari during  
practice, the ball hit me in the head three times? I better stop obsessing, or else I might end up dead or something."  
  
Yamato smiled, but he knew his brother wasn't at all cured at the thought of losing  
a crush. _He really does care about her a lot...._he thought. He opened the front door to let him out, and thought of how grown up he has gotten over the last couple of years. He reminded him of himself when he was his age. Remembering the dance at the Junior High, he suddenly was curious of how it was going to turn out.....  
  
_Meanwhile....._  
  
Hikari, Daisuke, Miyako, and Iori all dropped Tamashi off at her apartment, which  
was in the building across the street from where they all lived. They met her parents, and stayed there for a while. They all seemed like they were having a good time, but Daisuke only thought of just getting out of there. _What am I doing, checking out Tamashi??_ he kept on thinking to himself. _ I love Hikari, and no one else. _ His little pep talks with himself didn't seem to be working though. Tamashi was as smart, beautiful, gentle, kind,and loving as Hikari was. Plus, she was a excellent soccer player.  
  
They stopped by Hikari's apartment, and she asked everyone to come in. "Sorry,  
can't," Miyako said. "I need to get started on my homework right away. I have like, tons of it, as if you hadn't noticed." She gestured to her book bag, which looked like it was going to suddenly explode with books any minute.  
  
"Yeah, and my grandfather is giving me lessons in kendo in a couple minutes," Iori  
said. "So I guess we'll see you guys later."  
  
Hikari and Daisuke waved good-bye to their friends as they watched them walk  
down the hall and out of sight. Daisuke was relived that he was going to be alone with  
Hikari. After all these feelings he was feeling for Tamashi, he needed a reality check that reminded him he wasn't single anymore.  
  
As soon as they were gone, Hikari reached up and put her arms around Daisuke,  
giving him a kiss. When they were done, he asked, "What was that for?" He looked into  
her auburn eyes and his heart immediately started beating faster.  
  
"Everything," she replied.   
  
Daisuke smiled. _ My mind is made up. I will never love anybody as much as  
Hikari. Tamashi might attract me a little bit, but she is not Kari.   
_  
They leaned in for another kiss, but Kari's mind was on something else. _I wonder  
where Takeru is, _she thought worriedly as her lips pressed against his. _ He should've stopped by. He always does, after basketball practice, and that was over about ten minutes ago. Where is he? _ "I want to thank you for everything you've done for me, Takeru," she whispered, finishing her sentence, as she looked up at Daisuke.  
  
"What?" Daisuke blinked in surprise. "What did you call me?"  
  
"Huh? Oh- uh, nothing," Hikari stammered.   
  
"You just called me 'Takeru'," Daisuke calmly accused. But he actually wanted to  
burst out screaming.  
  
"I did not, Dais!" she protested. "You probably misunderstood me....Come on, lets  
get inside..." She fumbled through her pocket for the key. _My gosh, did I just call him  
Takeru? This isn't right....It's like I was hoping he was TK....It doesn't mean that I still  
have some feelings for him....right?  
_  
The question of still liking Takeru was on her mind the rest of the day. Whenever  
Daisuke tried to talk to her, she'd be spacing out. Eventually, she'd snap back to reality, but, Daisuke was really getting irritated. By the time he left the Yagami's after he had dinner there, Hikari seemed to go back to normal, but he still left with a suspicious mind that she might still have feelings for Takeru.  
  
_Don't worry about it,_ he told himself. _Just think about the dance. I'm going to  
make sure it will be a night none of us will forget!  
  
_***********************************  
I'll be back with Part 7 ASAP!


	7. Hikari's Worries

_A week later...Thursday night....Dance countdown: 1 day_  
  
"Tai, can I talk to you about something?" Kari asked as she walked into his room.   
Her brother was laying on top of his bed, writing on a piece of paper with his History text  
book sprawled out in front of him. He was supposedly doing his homework, but he didn't notice that his sister walked into the room.  
  
"Tai?" Kari poked him in the shoulder.  
  
"Wha??" Taichi yelped and quickly covered the piece of paper. "Hikari, don't  
scare me like that!"  
  
Hikari just gave him a weird look. "What are you hiding?"  
  
"Oh, um, nothing. I'm not hiding anything, what makes you think I'm hiding  
something??" Behind his back, he quickly tore off the paper from the spiral notebook,  
crumpled it up, and tossed it in his trashcan.  
  
_Talk about being subtle..._Hikari thought with a smile playing on her lips. She  
cleared her throat. "Um....Taichi, I wanted to talk to you about something..."  
  
"Sure." He cleared the textbook and notebook off his bed, and gestured to the  
empty spot. "Sit down. What do you want to talk about?"  
  
"Umm....It's sort of about TK...." she said, trying not to blush.  
  
Tai raised his eyebrow. "What about him?"  
  
"He....he's acting all weird around me," she replied, frowning. "I don't know  
what's wrong with him. He barely listens to me, and he doesn't come over after school  
anymore,-"  
  
"Yeah, I noticed that," Taichi interrupted. "He's usually walking home with you,  
isn't he?"  
  
"Yup...whenever he doesn't have basketball practice, that is," Kari said. "He  
doesn't even hang out with me that much anymore. And whenever I call him on the  
phone, he says he has to do something, and he'll call me back. But he never does. And at school, he always tries to get away from me. It's like he's avoiding me." Hikari thought back to that day when she tried to talk to Takeru at school....  
  
_Hikari was waiting at Takeru's locker during dismissal. She really needed to talk  
to him, and it seemed like a life time since the day they last chatted. It seemed like  
eternity since the last time they even hung out as friends.  
  
"Hey TK!" Hikari called out, as she saw the blonde walking toward his locker.   
She noticed that his blue eyes didn't have the same sparkle that they usually did.  
  
Takeru saw Hikari waiting at his locker, smiling and waving at him....  
  
And he turned and ran in the opposite direction._  
  
"How long has he been like this?" Taichi wanted to know.  
  
"Oh, I don't know," Hikari said. "Maybe, like, a week? He really has been acting  
strange. I watched his basketball practice yesterday, and he missed a foul shot. He never misses foul shots! And to top it all off, he seemed so distracted, the basketball whacked him on the head."  
  
Taichi was surprised. "Really? That seems so un-TK like....Maybe someone was  
messing with him at school. Or insulted him, or something," he suggested lamely. They both knew that TK was very well known at school and one of the most popular boys in the class. No one ever messed with him, even though he wasn't the fighting type at all.  
  
"I asked his friends on the basketball team afterward if there was anything wrong  
with him," Hikari said, looking at her hands. "They said that he's been acting like that all week....missing the ball, letting it slip out of his hands, getting hit by it....The coach  
seemed really pissed. They said he was about to take him out of the big game this  
Saturday, but then he thought about it. It turns out he trusts Takeru, and has faith that hewon't mess up on the game."  
  
"Well, that's good," Tai replied. Something came to mind. "Kari, I want you to  
think very hard. When was the first time last week that Takeru acted weird?"  
  
Hikari sighed. _This isn't going very well, _she thought. _ I've been thinking so hard  
about it, my head is about to burst._ She looked at her brother, Taichi, who was looking  
back at her, expectantly. His brown eyes were looking at her with patience. A very  
familiar look to Kari. Almost like....  
  
_Daisuke! _she thought with a jolt.  
  
_That day when I first told Takeru about me and Daisuke, _she realized. He did  
seem a little quiet when we all walked to school. Now that she thought about it, it wasn't like him to forget to study for a test, like he told Daisuke when she asked him if anything was wrong. He looked very distracted all day. He even avoided eye contact with Daisuke and Hikari. It was like he was thinking about something else....  
  
_Is it possible...??_ Hikari thought, as her heart started beating faster. _Could he  
like-  
_  
"Well?" Taichi asked, interrupting her thoughts.  
  
She told him about what she found out, and when she was finished, she saw a  
sparkle in his eyes. He smiled a little, and tried very hard not to laugh.  
  
"What??" she demanded.  
  
"You're going to laugh at me if I tell you," Taichi said.  
  
"No I won't. Tell me!" Hikari said, frowning.  
  
"I have a feeling that maybe....just maybe....that Takeru has a crush on you."  
  
Hikari stared at him. This was exactly what she was thinking. This was exactly  
what she was _hoping._ She liked Takeru ever since the Digiworld, and now she knows that it's possible that he likes her back! _Now, wait a minute,_ she stopped herself. _You're with Daisuke, remember? Takeru is just your friend. He is just your friend and nothing more.  
_  
Hikari crossed her arms stubbornly and said, "Well, I don't like him. I'm with  
Daisuke."  
  
Tai looked at his little sister, and saw color coming up on her cheeks. He knew  
she liked Takeru, but she didn't want to admit it to him. Or herself. "Hikari...." started  
Taichi. "Tell me something....What do you think of Daisuke?"  
  
Her face lit up. "Oh, he's great! He's smart, and funny, and sweet, and  
kind.....Takeru was right about giving him a chance."  
  
"Okay, put him aside from your mind," instructed Tai. "What do you think of  
Takeru?"  
  
Hikari smiled. "He's awesome too. He's always been there for me, ever since we  
were little kids. He's such a great friend."  
  
"Friend? Is that it?" Taichi inquired.  
  
Hikari opened her mouth to say yes, but nothing came out. She thought about it.   
Hard.  
  
_Do I really like him only as a friend? Am I denying myself?  
_  
"I don't know, Tai," she admitted. "I just don't know...."  
  
"Well, I guess you need to sleep on it. It's getting late," he said.  
  
"Yeah...I guess you're right. Good night, Tai. Thanks," she said as she got up,  
and gave him a hug, but a thought struck her. She smiled, and promised herself to take  
care of it later.   
  
"Anytime," he said, hugging her back.  
  
When it was midnight, Hikari got out of bed, and crept slowly down the hall to  
Taichi's room. Making sure not to wake anyone up, she slowly opened the door, praying that it wouldn't squeak. It didn't.  
  
Tai was snoring sleepily, as his sister crawled in, searching for the spot where he  
kept his trashcan. But it wasn't easy, since she couldn't see anything. All she had was a little key chain light that barely worked. She accidentally bumped into the edge of his bed, and made a thunking sound.  
  
Hikari winced as Taichi moved from his deep sleep. But he just turned over and  
started snoring again.  
  
Letting out a big and quiet breath, she made her way to the trashcan, and looked  
inside. She found what she was looking for, since Taichi crumples up his pieces of paper in a certain way, even though he never knew it. Slowly and silently, she crept back to her room, and turned on a light. She opened up the piece of paper, the same one Tai threw out when she walked in his room.  
  
She smiled a laughed quietly as she saw the big heart and the words 'Sora  
Takenouchi and Taichi Yagami 4ever' and below the heart, in small print 'Taichi loves  
Sora, Sora loves Taichi' and little hearts all around the page.  
  
_This is going to be good blackmail one of these days,_ she laughed to herself, as  
she hid it in her bookshelf and went back to sleep.  
  
_Journal entries that same night...._  
  
_Takeru:_  
  
I've been so bummed lately! It's the thing with Hikari, I know it. I just love her so much.   
I hope I get the courage to tell her soon. But what good will that do? I'll only embarrass  
myself. She doesn't really care for me, I know it. It always seems like she's ignoring  
me....well, okay, I always ignore her first. But what can I do? She's so hung up with Dais lately, I don't want to ruin her life....  
  
_Daisuke:_  
  
Kari or Tammy....Kari or Tammy....Kari or Tammy....Augh! I can't seem to make up my  
mind! Tamashi and I have spent a lot of time together this week. I'm surprised Hikari  
didn't slap me yet....I know! I'll flip a coin! Head for Hikari, Tails for Tamashi....Damn,  
it landed on Kari! Wait, I should be happy! Augh, okay, once more....Okay, it landed on Tammy....That's good right? No! It's wrong! Okay, two out of five....  
  
_He does this all night until he did it so many times, he forgot who had the most number of flips. He gives up and goes to bed._  
  
_Tamashi:_  
  
I don't care what really happens to that Yagami girl. Daisuke is practically drooling over  
me! He's going to be mine as soon as the dance tomorrow ends....  
  
********************  
  
>.< Okay, this fic is totally getting sucky. I fast-forwarded it a week, coz I know some of u guys are gettin tired of my rambling chapters, and want some Takari. So, the next chapter is going to be the dance. I know, finally! I just had to stick this in, coz I wanted u to know what was going on in Tamashi's mind, and Hikari needed that talk with Taichi so....Well, I'll be back soon!  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	8. Getting Hikari Ready for the Dance

A/N: Well, I was going to combine this part, and part 9, but there were too many charcters! So I had to seperate them. Hehe, I like the way I made Mimi and Sora in this one.....  
_******************************  
  
Friday afternoon...._  
  
As soon as the dismissal bell rang that afternoon, Takeru rushed right out the door  
and to his locker. He had to get to the gym as soon as he could. He was so depressed, was going to tell the coach that he was sick and couldn't make practice. The thought of Hikari and Daisuke dating does actually make him sick, so he wouldn't really have to fake anything.  
  
_This is so weird, _he thought, looking at his feet as he walked down the hall after he  
got his books from his locker. _I never thought I liked Kari this much....Now I finally  
know how I feel about her, she has a boyfriend....  
_  
Suddenly, he bumped into something. "Hey!" a girl's voice cried out, as Takeru  
dropped his books in surprise. He looked up, and saw a girl with blonde hair on the floor  
by his feet, picking up the books she just dropped.   
  
"Watch where you're going!" she snapped, looking up with him with bright green  
eyes.  
  
"Oh, sorry!" he apologized, and went down on his knees to help her. She looked  
familiar to him. Then he recognized her. _ That's that new girl, Tammy Kihaku..._he  
realized. _ I've heard about her from Kari and Dais....  
_  
"Whatever..." she muttered as she hurriedly put the books in her backpack, and  
walked off, as Takeru stared after her.  
  
_Geez, I was only helping; don't be too polite, _he thought sarcastically. He just  
shook his head and put the remaining books in his own back pack. He made his way to the gym, and told the coach his story. Just thinking about Hikari and Daisuke made him pale enough, so that his story was believable.  
  
Making his way out of the gym, he heard a familiar voice call his name. "Hey,  
TK!"  
  
_Oh great..._he thought. _It's Hikari..._He was just about to run away, like he almost  
always did these days, but Hikari caught up to him before he could do anything.  
  
_You can't run away from this time, _she thought, as she held on to a strap on his  
back pack. She put on a big smile and said, "So, what's up TK? I haven't seen you in a while."  
  
"Oh, um...nothing much," he muttered, looking down.   
  
Hikari frowned. _There he is, being all weird again... _"Hey, aren't you supposed  
to be at basketball practice right now?"  
  
"I'm don't feel too well," he replied, looking like he suddenly gained interest in his  
own shoes.  
  
"Oh....you do look a little pale..." Hikari observed. "Um...Are you going to the  
dance tonight?" she asked, trying to make a conversation.  
  
_Why would I?_ he wanted to say. Instead, he said, "I don't know. Probably not.   
Oh look," he said suddenly, looking behind Kari. "Daisuke's coming. And I better go,  
Hikari. I really don't feel well." With that, he ran off.  
  
"Hey, wait!" she exclaimed, wanting to go after him, but Daisuke held her back, by  
giving her a hug. This was the first time this week, that she didn't want him to hold on to her....  
  
**************************  
  
"Mimi? Sora??" Tai said in surprise as he held the front door open for the girls.   
He just got home from school, and was surprised to see them come over. Mimi was  
visiting from America for a couple of days, and she and Sora were going to do some  
hanging out while she was still there.  
  
"Hi, Tai," Sora greeted, as she kissed him lightly on the cheek.  
  
"Hi Tai, where's Kari?" Mimi demanded, as she looked around the apartment.  
  
"Umm....she's not home from school yet, Mimi," he answered. "Why? Are you  
going to take her out for some girlish thing?"  
  
"Take who out?" Kari said, as she unlocked the door with her key and stepped  
into the room.  
  
"Kari!" exclaimed Mimi as she pushed her way through Taichi and Sora.  
  
"Mimi! I didn't know you were visiting!" Kari was surprised.  
  
"Hikari Yagami, why didn't you tell me you're school was having a dance  
tonight???" Mimi demanded, ignoring her comment, with her hands on her hips, looking at the girl sternly. "And you're going with Daisuke Motomiya!!"  
  
"Well, Mimi Tachikawa," Sora piped up, "she just said that she didn't know you  
were visiting."  
  
Mimi turned to Sora. "Well, she could've e-mailed me!!" she wailed. She turned  
her attention back to Kari. "Do you have something to wear yet?"  
  
"Well, yeah sure-" Hikari started to say, but was interrupted when Mimi pulled her  
by the arm and dragged her to the direction of her room.  
  
"Show me the outfit, Hikari. I'm going to make sure you look you're best for  
Daisuke tonight! Mimi Tachikawa, Queen of Fashion, is here to guide you!" she declared.  
  
Sora and Taichi just looked at each other. They rolled their eyes and burst out  
laughing. Sora smiled and said, "We were going to go out for a movie or something, but  
then I told Mimi about Hikari's dance tonight, and that she's with Daisuke. I guess I  
created something uncontrollable...."  
  
Taichi laughed. "So it's all your fault that my sister has to listen to Mimi's fashion  
advice!" He pulled her close and kissed her. "But that's okay, I forgive you."  
  
She kissed him back and smiled again. "So, are you curious to see what's going on  
in Hikari's room? I am."  
  
"I'm curious, but..." He looked sideways into the direction of Hikari's room,  
where he could here Mimi yell about the subject of whether some flower print and some  
other color clashed. "Not _that _curious," he finished. "So, I'm going over to the soccer  
field for an early practice. Bye." He gave Sora one more kiss.  
  
"Bye," she replied, returning his kiss. She watched him leave, and went over to  
Kari's room. She opened the door to find Hikari, sitting on the bed, watching Mimi, who  
was expertly raiding her closet. On the bed next to Hikari was a pair of cute dark blue  
flare jeans with light blue and white stripes going down the sides. Partly overlapping the  
jeans was a sleeveless white blouse.  
  
Sora frowned at it, then at Mimi, who turned around to throw a light purple tank  
top on the bed, but ended up throwing it on Kari instead. "What's wrong with that outfit,  
Mimi?" Sora asked, pointed to the outfit next to Hikari.  
  
Mimi frowned back at Sora. "It's too....nonchalant and....normal-"  
  
"What do you mean 'normal'?" asked Sora, confused. "What, you want Hikari to  
go to the dance in a cow costume or something??"  
  
"No!" Mimi said, exasperated. "It's just that....jeans and a blouse? No offense,  
Hikari, but that outfit isn't right for a dance."  
  
"No offense taken," replied Hikari, with a sort of bored expression on her face.  
"But I already told you, Mimi, this dance is not formal."  
  
Mimi picked up the outfit by the hook of the hanger, and practically waved it in  
front of Hikari's face. "Look, this outfit just says, 'Hi, I'm a nice teenage girl that wants  
to have fun with my friends'."  
  
"But isn't that what I want?" Kari asked, frowning.  
  
"No..." Mimi replied, patiently. "You want an outfit that will sweep Daisuke off  
his feet!"  
  
_I do? _wondered Kari.  
  
"It wouldn't matter anyway," Sora interrupted. "Daisuke is so obsessed with  
Hikari, it wouldn't matter if she came to the dance in clothes that were just put in the  
laundry basket. He'll think she's beautiful no matter what. I don't see what's wrong with that outfit."  
  
"Oh, this is from a girl who likes to play sports, and sweat, and crush cans on her  
forehead with the guys," Mimi snipped.  
  
"Hey, take that back!" Sora exclaimed. "So what if I like to play sports and  
sweat?? I'm still a girl, remember? And I gave up crushing cans with my head a year  
ago!"  
  
"Well, this is going to be a big night for Hikari! She should look great, no matter  
what!"  
  
"I already told you, Daisuke won't care! He loves Hikari, and that's all that  
matters!"  
  
"But she still has to look good!!"  
  
Hikari sighed and fell back on her bed, staring at the ceiling. Of course she cared  
for Daisuke. More than anything. Well, except for Takeru....but they're only good  
friends, right? She still didn't think it was necessary for her two friends to fight over her  
fashion sense. Still sighing, she got up from her bed, and walked behind the two arguing friends. She took some random clothes from her closet, a pair of shoes, and went into the bathroom. Sora and Mimi were oblivious to this.  
  
Hikari changed into the outfit and came out of the bathroom, only to see Mimi and  
Sora buried in her closet again, and argue over her clothes.  
  
"There!" Sora said. "That's a cute shirt. Hikari should wear that to the dance!"  
  
"Sora! What are you talking about??" Mimi wailed. "It's a Nike shirt!!!!"  
  
"But it's cute!"  
  
"Now she should where _this_!"  
  
"No way, Mimi! It's way too frilly!"  
  
"It's better than that jock-ish outfit you were pointing out to!"  
  
"Umm....Guys?" Hikari said, sort of timidly. She couldn't believe how insane they  
were acting!  
  
"At least in that outfit, she won't look like Little Bo Peep!"  
  
"Well, at least in this outfit, she won't look like she just came from a soccer  
game!"  
  
"What's wrong with soccer?? Are you dissing soccer?????"  
  
"Guys..." Hikari said, a little louder. _ I wish I had my camp whistle right now, but  
Gatomon has it...._she thought.  
  
"Okay, fine, Miss Know-It-All-Sports-Are-My-Life!! What about _this _then!"  
  
"MIMI!! This is a Junior High dance! NOT THE PROM!"  
  
"It's cute, and it'll go well with those shoes!"  
  
"Umm...Hey, guys?" Hikari was getting seriously annoyed.  
  
"It's too formal!"  
  
"Is not!"  
  
"Is too!"  
  
"Is not!"  
  
"Mimi! Sora!" Hikari tapped her foot impatiently.  
  
"Is too!"   
  
"Is NOT!"  
  
"GUYS!!!"  
  
"Is TOO!"  
  
"Is not!"  
  
"Is not!"  
  
"Is too!"  
  
"Ha-ha, you agree with me!"  
  
"Hey, no fair!!!"  
  
"GUYS!!! CUT IT OUT, YOU'RE DRIVING ME INSANE, STOP  
FIGHTING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Hikari stomped her foot she was tapping, and the room shook.  
  
Sora and Mimi turned to look at Hikari in shock, realizing she was there the whole  
time. They've never heard Hikari yell like that before. Forgetting they were mad at each  
other, they took a good look at Hikari the two of them burst into two big smiles.  
  
Hikari was wearing a gray spaghetti-strapped tank top with two black stripes  
going down the sides, starting with blackening the straps. She was wearing a black  
wrap-around skirt that went to about three inches above her knee. It really made out her  
figure, and brought out the curves in her hips and thighs. On her feet were black clog-like shoes. Mimi and Sora both thought that the outfit was perfect for the dance.  
  
"Hikari, you look so pretty!" exclaimed Sora.  
  
"More than pretty! You look gorgeous!" declared Mimi. "You're going to sweep  
Daisuke off his feet, definitely!"   
  
"Really?" Hikari looked dumbfounded. "I just took these clothes out randomly, so  
you guys could stop fighting!"  
  
"It was childish of us. We're sorry," apologized Sora.  
  
"Yeah, sorry Hikari," Mimi said apologetically. "But, girl, look at yourself!" She  
went to the door of Kari's room and closed it, revealing the full-length mirror. Hikari's  
eyes widened, as she looked at herself in the mirror. She had to admit, she looked really good. She didn't expect to look like that.  
  
"You should pick your outfits at random often," Mimi joked.  
  
"Wait a sec," said Sora. She went over to the dresser, and got a black clip. She  
unfastened Hikari's red clip from her hair, and put the black one in.  
  
"Oh, I have an idea!" said Mimi. She, too, went over to the dresser, and went  
through Hikari's jewelry box. She rummaged through it, and saw what she was looking  
for. A gold necklace with a flower embedded in diamonds as the charm. The flower  
looked like the Symbol of Light, and Mimi fastened around Hikari.  
  
"Now twirl," Mimi ordered.  
  
Hikari obliged, and twirled, looking at herself at every angle of the mirror. "We  
have a winner," she announced. She turned to her friends. "Thanks, guys."  
  
"For what?" asked Sora. "You did this all by yourself."  
  
"Yeah," Mimi said. "All we did the whole time is fight."  
  
"Yeah, but because you guys fought, I picked this outfit randomly, and it turned  
out to be perfect!" Kari said happily, as they all laughed.  
  
**********************  
  
::jumps up and down:: Quick! Go to the next part!!!   
  



	9. True Love

  
  
_Friday night. Time: 6:40 PM_  
  
"Hikari, you look lovely," her mother said, for the hundredth time since she came  
home from work.  
  
"Yes, just wonderful," added her father, also for the hundredth time, as he hugged  
her.  
  
"Thank you." Hikari smiled.  
  
"Yeah, you don't look like my sister anymore," said Taichi, who just came back  
from soccer practice. "You'll have to tell Mimi and Sora to fight over your clothes more  
often."  
  
They all laughed.  
  
_Daisuke is going to be here any second..._thought Hikari, nervously smoothing out  
her skirt. _I hope he likes the outfit....I hope Takeru comes too...._She wouldn't want to go to a dance without her best friend beside her.  
  
_Ding-dong!  
_  
"That's him!" She shot up from the couch and looked at the clock. It was 6:48.  
She ran over to the door, and looked through the peep hole. Daisuke was standing  
there, looking nervous. He was turning his head, looking right and left, down the halls, as if he was about to bail any minute. Hikari thought he looked very casual, but cute, in  
black pants and a dark blue shirt. He didn't have on his goggles that he usually wore.  
  
Hikari held in her breath, and opened the door. Daisuke opened his mouth to say  
hi, but his eyes went wide as no sound came out. _Wow...I knew Hikari was beautiful, but I didn't know she could make herself even more beautiful...  
_  
"Hi, Kari," he squeaked, still looking at her outfit.  
  
She smiled. "Hi, Daisuke," she said. "Come in."  
  
"Uh, what?" he said, still blinking at her outfit.  
  
"I said come in," she repeated, holding the door open for him, trying not to laugh  
at his expression.  
  
"Oh, yeah, right," he stammered as he walked in the apartment. The Yagami's and  
Daisuke did their usual greetings, and then came the  
watch-what-you're-doing-you're-taking-out-my-daughter/sister talk.  
  
"Remember, be home by 11:00," said Hikari's mother.  
  
"Yes, Mama," she said seriously.  
  
"No drinking," her father said, with a serious face. "No smoking. No running  
away from the school or blowing it up....Because that will cost a fortune for us."  
  
Hikari giggled. Daisuke looked amused.  
  
"And no eloping," added Tai, with a serious and stern face. He looked right at  
Daisuke. "Remember, Motomiya, I know where you live."  
  
Daisuke flushed and gulped. Hikari just looked uncomfortable. She could see her  
boyfriend edge toward the door. "Um, okay Taichi. Bye! Bye Mama and Papa!" She  
gave all three of them a hug and a kiss.  
  
"Have a good time!" her parents said as they walked her and Daisuke to the hall.  
  
"Not _too_ good a time," Tai added, looking straight at Daisuke. He gulped.  
  
"Bye-bye Tai," Hikari quickly closed the door, and they both walked toward the  
elevator. "Don't worry Daisuke. Tai was just kidding."  
  
"I hope so," he said, looking a little pale. "If he was, you're brother's really good  
at acting."  
  
They didn't really say anything much on the way to the dance. Daisuke's father  
was driving them both. While he was driving, Hikari and Daisuke looked out both of their  
windows in the backseat. After a while, Daisuke figured he should hold Hikari's hand.   
Very slowly, he reached out for it. Hikari looked away from the window in surprise, and  
smiled at him. He relaxed an inch and smiled back.  
  
_Why am I so nervous around her all of a sudden?_ he wondered. _ Maybe because  
I haven't seen her look so beautiful before...  
_  
_I wonder if Takeru's coming to the dance...._Hikari couldn't help thinking.  
They were finally dropped of at the school's gym, and walked inside. It was  
already full of kids from the school, who were dancing, and running around; just plainly  
having a good time. Hikari and Daisuke said hi to a couple of people, and walked around the gym, surveying the colored lights and streamers.  
  
"Hey Kari! Daisuke!" someone yelled.  
  
They turned around and saw Miyako and Tamashi running toward them. Miyako  
was wearing black flared stretch pants and a tank top. Her shirt was simple: light purple, with a white butterfly in the middle. Tamashi was wearing a white mini-skirt and a lime green spaghetti-strapped tank top with velvet material.  
  
"Hey guys," Hikari greeted, smiling. "You both look great!"  
  
"You look great too, Hikari!" said Tamashi. "You too, Daisuke," she added,  
smiling at him. He blushed.  
  
"Hey guys, what's up?" he said, trying to sound casual. "Do you have dates?"  
  
"Nah," said Miyako. "We just came by ourselves."  
  
"Too bad Iori couldn't come," said Hikari, "since he's not in junior high yet....By  
the way...Where's Takeru?"  
  
"He told me he wasn't coming," said Daisuke. "Something about not feeling  
well...."  
  
"Really?" Miyako said, looking bewildered. "I saw him shoot baskets at the park  
just an hour ago. It was really amazing, even for him. He was playing with himself all  
around the court. It was almost like he was playing against someone else. Anyway, he  
was really pumped with energy."  
  
Hikari was feeling upset. _ I really wanted Takeru to come, too....I wonder why he  
really didn't want to come tonight....  
_  
"Hey, Hikari?" Tamashi asked. "Is it okay if I ask your boyfriend to dance with  
me?"  
  
"Sure, go ahead," Hikari replied, smiling.  
  
Tamashi turned to Daisuke and said in a low voice, "Daisuke Motomiya, will you  
do me the honor in dancing with me?"  
  
"Oh, I'd love to!" he said in a falsetto voice, and fluttered his eye lashes. They all  
burst out laughing as Daisuke and Tamashi danced their way into the dance floor.  
  
"Miyako, can you come with me? I'm going to call TK," Hikari said, grabbing her  
hand without a response. She made her way to the pay phone by the bathrooms. Putting in a quarter, she dialed the number, but it kept on ringing and ringing.   
  
"Hello," said Takeru's cheerful voice in their answering machine. "You have  
reached the Takaishi residence-"  
  
_Click._ Hikari hung up the phone. "They're not there," she said, disappointed.  
  
"Hey, it's okay," reassured Miyako. "He probably had a good reason for not  
coming. Now come on, lets join up with Tamashi and Daisuke."  
  
They made their way back into the gym, where they saw Tamashi behind Daisuke  
on the dance floor. He was talking to his friends from the soccer team.  
  
"Tammy!" called out Hikari as she and Miyako met up with her. She met her with  
a big smile and they all jumped and danced to the beat of the music. _Just wait,  
Yagami...._thought Tamashi, as she looked at her from the corner of her eye. _Your  
boyfriend will be mine by the time this night is over..._  
  
Suddenly, a slow song came on. Tamashi was going to ask Daisuke to dance, but  
got intercepted when Daisuke came and took Hikari's hand. "May I have his dance?" He kissed it.  
  
Hikari laughed. "Shut up, and let's dance." She put her arms around his shoulders  
as he put his arms lightly on her waist.  
  
"Come on, let's go," Miyako whispered to Tamashi. She dragged her out of the  
dance floor, and out of the way of her friends. Tamashi followed, but she really wanted to jump in and separate those two. _I'll wait,_ she thought. _ I'll just wait until the right  
moment....  
_  
*************************  
  
_9:30 PM_  
  
_I wonder how Hikari's doing right now...._Takeru wondered as he lay down on his  
bed, staring up at the ceiling. He was by himself at home, since his mother stayed late  
after work. He had just spent about three hours at the park, playing basketball by himself. When he got home, he just needed to let loose some energy he had in him, and went to the park. When he got home, he took a refreshing shower, and wanted to start on his homework. But all he could think of was Hikari.  
  
"Maybe I should've went to the dance," he said to himself. "Maybe not....I don't  
want to ruin her and Daisuke's night. I wouldn't exactly fit in with them without feeling  
the urge to take Kari in my arms...." He sighed. "Come on, Takaishi, forget about it.   
She's your best friend, and that's all she ever will be. Daisuke will take good care of her. Now let's get that homework done...."  
  
He lazily got up and took out his books from his school bag. He opened up his  
Chemistry book, but a piece of paper fell out of it. Curiously, he picked it up, and opened it up to read it.  
  
_Naoko-  
Don't worry about it! Daisuke will be mine by the time the dance ends. He's  
practically falling over me at this moment! I'll make him forget about Yagami. Besides,  
I'm much more beautiful, smart, and a much better soccer player than she is. I'll just  
bring him over to a private spot and show him what he's missing. Too bad you have to  
go to your aunt's house tonight. You're going to miss it...  
  
-Tamashi_  
  
"Tamashi!" Takeru repeated, shocked. "But how did I....? Of course! When we  
bumped into each other in the hall! I must've taken her Chemistry book instead of mine!   
Poor Hikari...." He read over the note. "What if she sees...."  
  
Suddenly, he moved like light, grabbing a black T-shirt, dark green vest, and black  
pants. He quickly brushed his teeth, and did his hair. He ran to the kitchen, and left a  
note for his mom that said he was going to go to the dance after all, and will be home by 11. Then, he ran out the door....  
  
********************  
_  
10:00 PM_  
  
After a whole bunch of fast songs, another slow song was put on by the DJ.   
Daisuke smiled, and turned to Hikari, about to ask her to dance, but got interrupted by  
Tamashi.  
  
"Um, excuse me, Daisuke, but.....Is it okay is I dance with you now? I mean, if  
that's okay with you, Kari...." She turned toward her and looked her in the eye. _You  
better say yes, Yagami._  
  
"Sure." She smiled. "I'm a little tired anyway. Miyako, will you go to the  
bathroom with me?"  
  
"Okay," Miyako shrugged as they got up and went to the bathroom.  
  
"So...will you dance with me?" Tamashi asked timidly, waiting for his response.  
  
"Sure, I will," he smiled at her, and they made their way to the dance floor.   
  
Tamashi put her hands around his shoulders, and he put his on her waist. _ Oh, it feels soo nice to be held by him! _she thought happily, as she leaned against him some more.   
_Now...do it! _She coughed.  
  
"Are you okay?" he asked, looking at her.  
  
"Um...I think I need a little fresh air...." she said, trying to look woozy.  
  
"Oh....well, come on, we can go outside for a little bit," Daisuke said, concerned.  
  
"That would be great," she replied, as they went out of the gym.  
  
They walked around the school, not saying much, and stopped at the bleachers in  
the football field. "Oh, look!" Tamashi said, suddenly. "The stars...they're so beautiful!"  
  
Daisuke looked up and saw about a thousand bright, shining stars, shimmering  
down towards them. There was a big crescent moon in the sky, hovering over the earth.   
The stars reminded him of how Hikari's eyes shined brightly every time she smiled....  
  
Suddenly, he felt Tamashi's hands on his shoulders. "Um...Tammy..." he said  
carefully. "What are you doing?"  
  
In reply, pressed her face against his lips in a long kiss.  
  
****************************  
  
"Hey, where's Daisuke and Tamashi?" Miyako asked as she and Hikari came out  
of the bathroom. They scanned the gym, looking for their friends, but they weren't found  
anywhere.  
  
Hikari took a can of Sprite from the refreshment table, and took a long sip of it.   
"Maybe they're outside somewhere. It is a little stuffy in here. I'll go find them, okay?"  
  
"Okay, hurry back!"  
  
Hikari sprinted her way out of the gym and out into the beautiful night. _They're  
probably at the bleachers in the football field. That would be a good choice to sit out  
from a dance. _She took another sip of her Sprite.  
  
She turned a corner into the football field, and saw two figures sitting on the  
bleachers. _Is that them? _she wondered. _Yup, I can tell by Tammy's shimmering fabric-_   
She stopped short until she realized what they were doing.  
  
_Are they....kissing?  
_  
She gulped, and crept up the bleachers to take a closer look. _They ARE kissing! _  
_In the biggest lip lock I have ever seen! I haven't even seen Tai and Sora kiss like that!_ She felt a lump in her throat as tears came to her eyes. _That...bitch....She knew perfectly well that we were going out! And Daisuke....damnit, what happened to us?! If he loved me, he should've been able to fight that...  
_  
She was about five feet away from them now, and they were still kissing. Then she  
saw Daisuke's hand move toward Tamashi butt. Hikari let out a little whimper, as anger  
flowed through her. She did the one thing she could think of.  
  
She doused them both with Sprite.  
  
******************************  
  
"Miyako!!!" A familiar voice entered her ears.  
  
"Takeru?" she turned around, and sure enough, the tall blonde was running toward  
her, panting as sweat trickled down his face. "Takeru what happened to you??"  
  
"I....ran....from....my house..." he panted. "Hikari....Where is she?"  
  
"Daisuke and Tamashi left the gym, and Hikari went out looking for them. Why?"   
Miyako was puzzled. But Takeru ran out of the gym without giving an answer.  
  
*******************  
  
"Whaaa???" Daisuke exclaimed as he felt something cold splash him. It made him  
jump out of the kiss he had with Tamashi.  
  
"Oh my god, it's raining!" exclaimed Tamashi. She looked at Daisuke, concerned.   
"What's wrong?"  
  
_Holy shit..._he thought, looking at Hikari's blazing eyes. Tamashi turned around  
and saw that she was standing behind her. "Oh, hello Hikari," she said casually.  
  
_What have I done??? _ Daisuke wanted to kill himself. _Why did I do this?? My  
god..._ Suddenly, tears trickled down Hikari's cheeks.  
  
"No! Hikari, I'm sorry!" He reached out to touch her, but she slapped him as fast  
as Gatomon's Lightning Claw attack. "Please don't cry, Hikari, I'm sorry," he whispered.  
  
"Shut the hell up!" she yelled. She looked at Tamashi, and saw an amused look on  
her face. "Tammy, I don't believe you!! How could you do this!"  
  
"Hikari, I'm sorry-" Daisuke began, almost forming tears.  
  
"I SAID shut up!" she screamed.  
  
"But Hikari, I love you-"  
  
"No! If you really loved me, you would've fought it! I....I hate you, Daisuke  
Motomiya!!" She threw the empty can down on the ground and ran away in tears.  
  
His heart broke. There was nothing more painful than to hear her say that she  
hated him. "Hikari!!!" He started after her.  
  
"Leave her," said Tamashi, holding onto his hand. "She's no good for you  
anyway. I'm much more better than her."  
  
He snapped his hand back. "You're evil compared to her. Hikari is like an angel.   
She's beautiful and smart-"  
  
"I'm SOOO much more better than her!" insisted Tamashi. "Why can't you see  
that?"  
  
"No," he shook his head. "Compared to her, you're nothing but a piece of shit.   
I'll never go out with you, no matter what." With that, he walked away, hearing her curse him out and how he doesn't deserve her. But he didn't care...  
  
*********************  
  
Hikari ran as fast as she could to the gym, thinking about how this whole thing  
flashed right in front of her. She stopped and  
squeezed her eyes shut, trying to block that scene of them kissing out of her head. _Why would he do this to me?? I thought he loved me.... _She started walking towards the entrance of the gym, letting tears fall freely down her face.  
  
"Hikari!!" She looked up, and saw Takeru running towards her. "Hikari! Oh,  
Hikari, what's wrong??" He took the girl in his arms and let her cry into his chest.  
  
"Daisuke...Motomiya..." she sniffed. "Is the biggest jerk on earth! No, make that  
the biggest jerk on earth AND the Digital World!"  
  
"Hikari..." he said softly with sorrow. He felt so sick to see the girl that he loved  
in so much pain. "Tell me what happened. Come on, I'll walk you to the gym."  
  
He put his arm around her and they started walking as Hikari blurted out the whole  
story to him. "I'm so foolish!" she cried out in anguish. "I don't know how I could've  
ever thought they we....that we'd be together...." A new stream of tears fell down her  
face.  
  
"It's not your fault, Kari," Takeru said, hugging her. They sat down on the bench  
outside of the gym, and he held her close, feeling the same pain she had. "If he really  
loved you, he would've fought Tamashi."  
  
"That's exactly what I told Dais," she said, looking up into his dark sapphire eyes.   
She sniffed. "I don't know what to do....Oh, TK, I don't want him for a boyfriend  
anymore....I don't even think I want him as a friend...."  
  
He looked softly into her eyes. "It's okay Hikari, I'm here. I won't let anything  
happen to you...He doesn't deserve you....No one does, not even me....You're too  
special...." His voice seemed very far away, as he was lost in thought. "When God made you, he put so much of his powers into making you so perfect...The rest of us are crap compared to you...You're so beautiful and smart and...." His voice trailed off as he  
snapped back into reality. "Oops...Um...Sorry, Kari..." he muttered, blushing a crimson  
red.  
  
Hikari was in shock. She had never heard those words spoken to her before.   
Warm energy surrounded her, as she could feel Takeru's love flowing into her. It was one of the greatest feelings she had ever felt.  
  
"Here, Hikari..." Takeru said, breaking the awkward silence. He took out a  
handkerchief and gently wiped the tears off her face. "You're make-up's running from  
crying....let me fix it," he said, as he wiped off the black smudges off her face.  
  
Hikari snorted and giggled. "You sound like Mimi!"  
  
They both started laughing, and they couldn't stop. Takeru had to clutch his  
stomach because it hurt so much from laughing. Hikari thought she would fall off the  
bench and onto the ground, but Takeru was holding onto her firmly, as if he would never  
let go.  
  
Suddenly, Takeru looked down at Hikari, and did a double take. He didn't notice  
her outfit until that moment. "Hikari, you look gorgeous..." he said softly, looking at her. "Well...you always look gorgeous...."  
  
Hikari blushed. "You don't look that bad yourself..." Their eyes locked. Auburn  
to sapphire. They couldn't look away from each other. Their faces drew closer and  
closer, and their heartbeats grew faster and faster. It was only a matter of time, when they felt their lips brush against each other. And they drew back and brushed their lips again, only holding it for a longer time, as Takeru practically cradled Hikari's slender body in a very passionate kiss.  
  
They broke away, looking at each other in shock. "Uh...I-uh..." Takeru stuttered,  
blushing furiously. He took a deep breath. "You know, I've always wanted to do that..."  
  
Hikari smiled shyly. "So did I..."  
  
"I've loved you since the Digiworld, Hikari. I just never told you. I didn't know if  
you felt the same way."  
  
"Well, I do, TK. I love you more than anything." They lips met again in a  
heartbeat, but was interrupted by someone shouting.  
  
"Hikari! Hikari!!!" It was Daisuke.  
  
He ran up to them, with the emotions of pain and anguish flowing through him.   
He had seen the whole thing. He wanted to punch Takeru right at that moment. He  
contained himself though. _Hikari doesn't deserve me,_ he realized, sadly. _Her and  
Takeru....it could happen....it was probably meant to be...  
_  
"What do you want, Daisuke??" Takeru said angrily as he shot up from the bench,  
and was face to face with him. He hands clenched into fists.  
  
"I want to say...." He took a deep breath. "I'm sorry. Both of you. Hikari," he  
said, looking down at her. "You....you don't deserve me. You probably never did. I'm  
so sorry. Someone special like you doesn't deserve a guy like me.....I just want you to be happy....I'd understand if you didn't want to be my friend anymore...." He looked down at the ground in shame.  
  
Hikari's face soften, and so did Takeru's. "I forgive you Daisuke. It's okay. But  
what about...Tamashi?"  
  
"Tamashi's history," he answered, with a grim face. "She's such a snob. I'm sorry  
I felt attracted to her in the first place. I was a bad boyfriend....and a bad friend."  
  
"That's okay, Daisuke," Hikari replied. "Because....if it weren't for you..." She  
looked up at Takeru and started blushing.  
  
He looked from Takeru or Hikari and grinned. "Hey, it's probably destiny. I'm  
happy for you two. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going home." He started walking away.  
  
"So soon?" Takeru asked, confused.  
  
Daisuke laughed and gestured to his clothes. "You're girlfriend could be a  
champion Sprite splasher," he joked. "Be careful around her when she has a soda." He  
grinned and walked away, leaving the two watching after him.  
  
_My....girlfriend?_ Takeru thought, his heart beating fast. _I've been waiting for this  
to happen for a long time....Hikari Yagami is actually my girlfriend now. _ He smiled to  
himself.  
  
"This the last dance of tonight!" they could hear the DJ say. "Pick the person you  
care about the most, and get on the floor!"  
  
Takeru turned to Hikari and smiled. She nodded, and smiled back, as she slipped  
her arm through his, and he escorted her into the gym. The first notes of the song were  
blaring in a sweet melody. Takeru put his hands gently on her waist, as she reached up  
and put her arms around his shoulders.  
  
_When the visions around you  
Bring tears to your eyes  
And all that surround you  
Are secrets and lies  
I'll be your strength  
I'll give you hope  
Keeping your faith when it's gone  
The one you should call  
Was standing here all along  
_  
Takeru held Hikari closer, taking in the sweet scent of shampoo on her brown hair.   
_This is like, a dream come true..._he thought.  
  
_I'd never thought this would happen, _thought Hikari, lightly resting her head on  
his chest. _  
  
And I will take  
You in my arms  
And hold you right where you belong  
Till the day my life is through  
This I promise you...  
This I promise you  
  
I've loved you forever  
In life times before_  
  
Takeru was suddenly lost in thought about how his crush on Hikari came to be.   
He thought he was very lucky that he and Hikari were both sent to the Digiworld. That's  
when he first started liking her. _ Maybe Daisuke was right. Maybe it_ was _destiny..._  
  
_And I promise you never  
Will you hurt anymore  
I give you my word  
I give you my heart  
This is a battle we've won  
And with this vow  
Forever has now begun...._  
  
Hikari listened to the words of the music, taking in the words of the sweet song. It  
was weird. It was as if the heavens above requested the song, watching down over them. _ What if it really was destiny? _ Hikari couldn't help thinking.  
  
_Just close your eyes  
Each lovin' day  
And know this feeling won't go away  
Till the day my life is through  
This I promise you  
This I promise you_  
  
Hikari leaned closer against Takeru, listening to the soft heartbeat in his chest that  
was beating hard, and double time. They both knew that they wouldn't want to be  
anywhere on earth, but in each other's arms....  
  
_Over and over I fall  
When I hear you call  
Without you in my life, baby  
I just wouldn't be living at all  
  
And I will take  
You in my arms  
And hold you right where you belong  
Till the day my life is through  
This I promise you, baby  
_  
Hikari lifted her head to get a look at Takeru. He looked down at her, and smiled  
softly, with love. She returned his smile.  
  
"Takeru..." she whispered. "You are my best friend....I just hope  
this....us....doesn't fall apart like Daisuke and me....I mean, this is a different relationship, I know....But...that was so harsh...I can't help thinking...." Her voice trailed off as Takeru planted a soft kiss on her lips.  
  
_Just close you eyes  
Each lovin' day  
And know this feeling won't go away  
Every word I say is true  
This I promise you_  
  
"It's okay, Hikari," he whispered softly. "I'm not like Daisuke. He's a great  
person, but he was wrong to kiss Tamashi....And I won't let anything happen to you. I  
won't hurt you. I'd be so foolish to let you go. I'll love you and protect you no matter  
what...."  
  
_Every word I say is true  
This I promise you  
I promise you..._  
  
"I promise."  
  
**********************************  
  
Whew!! This fic is DONE! Finally!!! ::dances around:: What'd ya think?? Please reply! Hehe...making a romance fic was actually pretty fun. I'm more into drama and adventure. Maybe I'll make another romance fic. Tell me some requests!!! ::bows:: Ja ne, minna!  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



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